How to Copy Cell Formatting in Microsoft Excel

Find the method that works for you

Formatting yourExcel worksheetis an important step in making your work presentable. Microsoft Excel offers you several ways to copy a cell’s format. For example,Format Painteris a direct way of copying the formatting of one cell and applying it to another. But there are other ways of copying formatting and this article will help you find the one that works for you and the type of your work.

1. Copy Formatting in Excel with Paste Special

When you want to copy cells in Microsoft Excel, you notice there are several paste options at your disposal. Paste Formatting allows you to copy only the formatting of the cell, but not its content.

Let’s see how it works in an example. You want to copy the formatting of cell A2 which has a red background and white font color, to cell B2 which has a different value in it without any formatting:

Another way to do it is:

This method will also work if you want to paste the formatting to multiple cells in the same worksheet or in other worksheets in a workbook. In that case, you’ll have to select the range of cells to which you want to apply the copied formatting.

2. Copy Formatting in Excel with Format Painter

Format Painter is the most helpful tool in Microsoft Excel if you want to copy cell formatting. It can help you reproduce all formatting settings such as Number format, Font size, face, and color, cell background color, text alignment, and more. Here’s how you can use this tool to copy cell formatting to other cells in your worksheet:

You can also use the Format Painter tool to apply copied cell formatting to a range of cells. All you need to do is select the sample cell, then select the Format Painter tool, and drag your cursor over the range of cells you want to apply the formatting.

If you double-click the Format Painter tool button in the Home tab, this will lock it to your cursor. You can use this feature to select and apply formatting to multiple non-adjacent cells.

If you want to copy the formatting of one column, to another column. You’ll select the header of the sample column, select the Format Painter tool, and then click the header of the target column. This will paste the formatting row-by-row.

3. Copy Cell Formatting with the Drag and Drop Menu

The Drag and Drop menu is a neat feature that’ll allow you to quickly move the formatting from one cell to another. Here’s how you can do it:

4. Copy Formatting with Fill Handle

Fill handle is a useful Excel feature users can use to auto-fill cells or copy formulas. But it can also be used to copy the Excel formats. Here’s how:

Note: If you can’t see the auto-fill drop-down arrow you’ll have to turn it on. Here’s how:

There’s a chance you still can’t see the Fill Handle drop-down menu. If this is the case:

5. Excel Shortcuts to Copy Formatting and Apply

Unfortunately, there’s no singleExcel keyboard shortcutthat you can use to copy cell formats. The typical Ctrl + C and Ctrl + V are the commands to copy and paste the content.

You can use a sequence of shortcut keys that’ll make your formatting copying quicker. Here’s a list of useful cell formatting copy shortcuts:

1. To access Paste Special with keyboard shortcuts pressShift+F10and thenRwhile still holding the Shift button. Then hit theEnterbutton.

Shift + F10 displays the context menu.

Shift + R selects the Paste Only formatting option.

2. To quickly access the Excel Format Painter button press the following keyboard buttons one by one:Alt,H,F,P.

Alt gives you access to keyboard shortcuts for ribbon commands.

H selects the Home tab on the ribbon.

F and P select the Format Painter tool.

Mastering the art of copying cell formatting in Microsoft Excel is a valuable skill that can significantly streamline your workflow. Whether you’re working on intricate spreadsheets or simple data tables, these techniques will save you time and ensure a consistent and polished look across your Excel documents.

Nicolae is a Jack of all trades technology writer with a focus on hardware, programming languages, and AI image-processing software. Over the last five years, he has ghostwritten numerous tech how-to guides and books on a variety of topics ranging from Linux to C# programming and game development. Nicolae loves everything that has to do with technology and his goal is to share his knowledge and experience with others.Read Nicolae’s Full Bio

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